F-Stop beyond interview

I had the pleasure of sitting down with the incredible Ron Dawson of Cinematic Studios during WPPI in Las Vegas the other week for as part of his weekly F-Stop Beyond audio interview series (I posted a video he made from the week here). A live, unedited interview was a new experience for me so there are plenty of moments where I mess up what I'm trying to say, repeat something I've already said, and I think just about every response I begin with "um."

I was taken aback when, just a few questions in, he asked if my parents are married (which they aren't) and continued to press questions surrounding my parent's divorce. It's something I don't talk about openly very often because it happened so long ago and my family has moved on made peace with what happened. He also asked about questions I was better prepared to answer... how I got into photography, why weddings, future goals, etc.

It's about 35 minutes long. So if you have a spare half hour, click the green link below and have a listen to episode #30 (you can subscribe to the series on iTunes podcast).

Geesh, I'm only about 10 minutes in, but I admit that I'm a little surprised by the therapy session that he sprung on you. I've known you for 28 years and I didn't know the majority of that stuff about your parents! You handled it very gracefully.

It's probably too late to chime in on this particular post, but since I found it, I thought I'd address some of the comments. F-Stop Beyond is by nature a personal interview. We peg ourselves as "Fresh Air" for photographers (alluding to the NPR talk show with Terry Gross). I always ask personal questions. We've dealt with issues like faith, family, philosophy, racial prejudice, date rape, politics, death of loved ones, and relationships. Whereas other photography podcasts are about f-stops, lenses, Photoshop, or brand marketing, our show is about those aspects of the photographer that make him or her human. That's what the "Beyond" in our title is about.

I can understand if some of you went into it thinking it would be a technical interview why you'd be thrown off. However, the feedback on our format has been tremendous. Listeners are encouraged to see that the wildly successful photographers that they so often put on a pedestal, are human too. And that encourages our listeners in their on professional careers. And some of the more moving stories (like Emilie's) have also offered hope and enlightenment to the many listeners who may have dealt with similar issues themselves.

And frankly, another objective of the show IS to reveal aspects of the guest's life that may never have come up before. (As Rachel pointed out above). That's a comment I often hear or read from listeners to the show. That they learned something about the guest they've never known, despite the number of years they may have known that photographer.

Lastly, for what it's worth, I always ask guests prior to the interview if there are any topics they prefer NOT to talk about, then I don't tread there. And in some cases, guests have contacted me after the fact to have me edit out things they've said. Out of respect, we do so. My hats off to Emilie for allowing us to air this very personal side of her life. I have no doubt that many were touched by her openness.

I hope that sheds a little more light on why I asked Emilie the questions I did. I encourage you to listen to some of the other interviews and